Cornwall Council has refused planning permission on a change of use for a pub to be converted into a single dwelling.

The owners of The Prince of Wales Inn, in Newton St Martin, had applied to convert the now closed pub into a single dwelling house, however, Cornwall Council have refused the application on the grounds of a conversion "to a sole residential use would deny the population of Newtown and nearby rural settlements, together with tourists, an important community facility which contributes to the social and economic wellbeing of the local community."

According to the change of use application, which was submitted by Gilly Slater of Enhance Land & Planning on behalf of Tom Briant: "The pub has been marketed since 2015 but no acceptable offers have been received, despite a significant reduction in the asking price.

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"The six-year marketing effort, coupled with the fact that the property has now been removed from the List of Assets of Community Value, indicates that the likelihood of the property being bought back into use as a pub is slim at best.

"Even prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the pub was not financially viable, despite significant financial input from the applicants to refurbish and improve the dining facilities available."

The pub is currently being eyed up by the community group The Friends of the Prince of Wales, Newtown St Martin Inn who have said they had been waiting for the decision to be made regarding the change of use application before launching their share offer with which they hope to be able to raise the funds required to buy the pub.

In a update posted on the group's social media page, organisers have claimed they have already secured £125,000 in funding and will soon be launching the share offer in which the hope members of the public will invest to become shareholders in The Prince of Wales Inn.